Furnishings for your windows are of prime importance. Aside from the functional side, they carry a huge responsibility in terms of design and décor. The selection of your curtain or blind could either make or break your room.
There are a few things to keep in mind when putting together your window dressing. One is the amount of light and/or darkness you wish to let into the room, the amount of privacy you want to secure for your room, and finally of course the style and design aesthetic of your room.
Most consumers are aware of and keep in mind these basic requirements when zoning in on a particular blind or curtain design. But unfortunately, most also restrict themselves in terms of creativity and often go in for the very basics in window dressing. That need not be the case. Even a simple window blind can be made unique, interesting, creative and eye-catching with a few tips, tweaks and tricks.
The Roman blind is now a stalwart in design sensibilities in modern apartments. But by just laying down a piece of fabric on a window is a dull way of dressing it up. A simple border is a quick and easy manner by which you can make your blind more eye-catching. Normally, a border in a contrasting fabric is placed at the edges of the blind, but leaving an inch or two from the outside edge and stitching on a piece of fabric in a contrasting colour forms a more graphic visual for your window. In this manner, you can play around with the various methods and try out different means of contrasting the fabric with a border. You need not decorate on all four sides of the blind. Play around with it. Border the blind on only the two vertical sides or three sides if you wish or sometimes, just fit a contrasting colour at the bottom of your blind. Similarly, the positioning of the contrasting fabric can be played around with. Normally, placed at the edge of the fabric, it can also be placed around one or two inches away from the edge.
Another interesting method of being innovative with your Roman blind is to try out different attachments to it. Fringing is a quirky and playful manner to bring a little fun into your blind. Fringing can be bought in most upholstery stores and would be attached to the bottom edge of your blind.
Aside from fringes, scour stores that cater more to fabrics and materials meant for clothing have interesting elements like round foam balls, tassles faux fur trimmings, etc. that can be lined to the edge of your blind to give it a twist.
Scalloping your Roman blind is another classic and chic way to infuse the twist in the regular. Scallops once again can be introduced to the bottom of your blind or to the three unattached edges. This is a feminine characteristic and is most often used in bedrooms or kitchens with a country style theme to it. You can dress up the scalloped edges as well which look very appealing with either a border in a different colour or additions like the fringing or the foam ball attachments.
The bottom of your blind need not be in a straight line. Try new variations to the regular horizontal blind. Like the scallops, a twist can be introduced to the regular rectangular Roman shade. A V-shaped edge can be introduced at the bottom of the blind and sometimes can be mimicked by placing the same shape towards the top of the blind in a flap style. Add a tassle at the end of the V, along with tassles on the above flap for a distinguished and elegant blind.
There is no need to get stuck with a plain and boring Roman blind. Small creative adjustments will provide you with unique shade for your window.
The writer is an interior designer, with offices in Delhi and Mumbai. E-mail her at info@fleurxavierdesign.com